Figure skating lesson costs

I just started to (finally) attend a skating lesson last Saturday. Since there is no rink in the place where I live, I need to go to a neighbor town to practice.
It was about 2,5 hours by bus and cost me like $40 return. the lesson fee itself was $15 for first-timer and after it costs $50 for one hour.
In total it costs me almost $100 one day and not forgot to say that all the students are mostly 5-13 years old (I'm 23), all their mommys was waiting outside and watching them closely, they were looking at me weirdly (I just feel it though..)

So, I want to get the idea how much it costs in your country/city? so I can figure out whether it will be worth it to continue the lesson.

For my local rink it's $17.50 for each half-hour learn-to-skate class. The cost is the same all the way up to when you complete the basic skills and through the free skate levels. There's a 10% discount for re-enrolling in consecutive two-month sessions, so it benefits people who stick with it. There are adult classes so it's not just kids. Being in the class also means that going to public sessions is a lot cheaper -- to me, the public sessions are where the real "body learning" takes place, in terms of the body getting used to the feel of the moves, rather than the "head learning" instruction in class, so it really helps make things affordable.

Well, it's not going to be comparable, is it? The exchange rates are different, prices are different. A waiter in the US might be lucky to be paid $3 an hour, an Australian waiter could expect $20 or more. Too many variables to say.

My private lesson fee is $35 for half an hour, or $70/hour. I buy a ten visit card to my rink which is $120, or $13 a session (1.5 hrs).

And I was 22 when I started, and I still compete even now against kids more than half my age. I don't care. If you care, well, that's your problem.

You have to ask yourself if it is worth continuing lessons. For me, I will sacrifice almost everything else to be able to go to the rink. If it means I buy homebrand stuff for my shopping that week, so be it. It's not about the money, it's about the work, the ice, the love I have for the sport.

Well, it's not going to be comparable, is it? The exchange rates are different, prices are different. A waiter in the US might be lucky to be paid $3 an hour, an Australian waiter could expect $20 or more. Too many variables to say.

My private lesson fee is $35 for half an hour, or $70/hour. I buy a ten visit card to my rink which is $120, or $13 a session (1.5 hrs).

And I was 22 when I started, and I still compete even now against kids more than half my age. I don't care. If you care, well, that's your problem.

You have to ask yourself if it is worth continuing lessons. For me, I will sacrifice almost everything else to be able to go to the rink. If it means I buy homebrand stuff for my shopping that week, so be it. It's not about the money, it's about the work, the ice, the love I have for the sport.

Hi karne, thank you for the reply! That's true actually since the coach said half of the kids there came from the same place as me.
I have so many things to consider right now that is why I asked this question.

$70 for a private lesson is a great deal! last time for an hour lesson, since I am very beginner and not even up to those kids' level,
the coach ask me to stay on the side, she talked to me like 3 times only.. the kids are the priority(there are about 15 of them).

that also one thing but right now I want to know how is everyone doing with the fees.

last time for an hour lesson, since I am very beginner and not even up to those kids' level,
the coach ask me to stay on the side, she talked to me like 3 times only.. the kids are the priority(there are about 15 of them).

That is VERY wrong. You paid your money, you are a priority as well. You are not less of a priority than the kids just because you're an adult. Please talk to the coaches about that never happening again.

Maybe investigating private lessons might be a good idea, if the group coaches are going to ignore you as an adult. Beginners can take private lessons - I did, because I worked the only day my rink had group.

$70 for a private lesson is a great deal! last time for an hour lesson, since I am very beginner and not even up to those kids' level,
the coach ask me to stay on the side, she talked to me like 3 times only.. the kids are the priority(there are about 15 of them).

Eh that doesn't sound right, you're a paying customer like any of the other students.

It's possible that you attended the wrong class (i.e. class was too advanced), or that the coach wasn't used to adult students or something or the coach was doing it privately (i.e. not part of a rink program).

You should probably look and see if the rink has classes geared toward adults. My local rink offers both learn-to-skate basic (for kids) and learn-to-skate adult classes. They're done at the same time (with different coaches) but use different parts of the rink so there's no confusion about showing up at the wrong time. Failing that, if your rink doesn't offer separate adult classes, then you can see if there are other coaches available. The learn-to-skate programs are advertised on the rink's website so I can check out the times and stuff from home and don't need to physically go there to inquire.

One reason why you might want to take classes geared toward adults is that the adult skill progression is somewhat different from the "regular" skill progression. They largely overlap though so it may not be too big a deal.

Well, it's not going to be comparable, is it? The exchange rates are different, prices are different. A waiter in the US might be lucky to be paid $3 an hour, an Australian waiter could expect $20 or more. Too many variables to say.

That is VERY wrong. You paid your money, you are a priority as well. You are not less of a priority than the kids just because you're an adult. Please talk to the coaches about that never happening again.

Maybe investigating private lessons might be a good idea, if the group coaches are going to ignore you as an adult. Beginners can take private lessons - I did, because I worked the only day my rink had group.

Yes, I actually think it will be better to ask for private lesson instead, considering that I don't really learn anything with the group lesson.

One more question, did your coach increase their fees once you finally mastering the basic movement?

Originally Posted by Vanshilar

Eh that doesn't sound right, you're a paying customer like any of the other students.

It's possible that you attended the wrong class (i.e. class was too advanced), or that the coach wasn't used to adult students or something or the coach was doing it privately (i.e. not part of a rink program).

You should probably look and see if the rink has classes geared toward adults. My local rink offers both learn-to-skate basic (for kids) and learn-to-skate adult classes. They're done at the same time (with different coaches) but use different parts of the rink so there's no confusion about showing up at the wrong time. Failing that, if your rink doesn't offer separate adult classes, then you can see if there are other coaches available. The learn-to-skate programs are advertised on the rink's website so I can check out the times and stuff from home and don't need to physically go there to inquire.

One reason why you might want to take classes geared toward adults is that the adult skill progression is somewhat different from the "regular" skill progression. They largely overlap though so it may not be too big a deal.

BTW the prices I mentioned were for Texas, USA.

That was I thought at first but I did asked the person and she said they mix the class for kids and adult. I didn't really expect that since what I saw last time (in other rink thou) was a class full of adults. I thought it will be easier and faster for me to learn if they have adult classes.

To be honest, I'm so disappointed since I finally made up my mind to learn skating and really looking forward to it. I think i will try to come one more time and discuss whether they have any option that fit me best.
Anyway, thank you so much for the answer!

Oh yes, I forgot. People in the US require tips to survive. In Australia we actually pay a living wage.

Originally Posted by figureskateobasan

Yes, I actually think it will be better to ask for private lesson instead, considering that I don't really learn anything with the group lesson.

One more question, did your coach increase their fees once you finally mastering the basic movement?

No, she did not. Most coaches don't. The only thing that might change is that your lesson length might change, which might change the cost. I only have one half-hour private lesson every week - the rest of my ice time is practice. That's enough for me, even now. An hour as a beginner I would think would be a little bit of overkill...

Oh yes, I forgot. People in the US require tips to survive. In Australia we actually pay a living wage.

Yes, our minimum wage has been the cause of nationwide frustration for quite some time, especially this past year. But that doesn't inflate the difference between an Australian and American server's pay to a ludicrous $17/hr

One more question, did your coach increase their fees once you finally mastering the basic movement?

Originally Posted by karne

No, she did not. Most coaches don't. The only thing that might change is that your lesson length might change, which might change the cost. I only have one half-hour private lesson every week - the rest of my ice time is practice. That's enough for me, even now. An hour as a beginner I would think would be a little bit of overkill...

Agreed. I've never known a coach to charge different amounts per hour based on the skill level of the student.

Your costs might increase as you achieve higher levels, but that would be from some combination of taking longer or more frequent lessons from the same coach, switching to a different coach who charges higher fees, skating more practice sessions per week, or switching from public sessions to designated figure skating sessions that cost more.

Switching from group lessons to private lessons would also increase the cost. But if the rink doesn't offer a group class that actually engages you at your age and skill level, you won't learn as much per dollar spent anyway.

To be honest, I'm so disappointed since I finally made up my mind to learn skating and really looking forward to it. I think i will try to come one more time and discuss whether they have any option that fit me best.

Talk to the skating director and see what your options are. Can that teacher do a better job of teaching all the students in the class? Is there a more appropriate class? Or would you be better off with private lessons?

My rink charges $152USD for a series of 8 group lessons. That includes 8 practice ice (non-freestyle) passes. If you re-register for the next session on the last day, then you get a 10% discount on the next session.

Private lesson fees are set by the instructor - none are published so it is all word of mouth. From what I can tell, prices (30-minute lesson) vary from $35 to $45. Ice time is purchased separately - ~$13 for 40-minutes (freestyle).

From what I can, there are two different methods of raising private lesson fees on students.
- Option 1 is whatever fee you start with, you continue with time. We have been in 1 instructor for over 4 year and her fees have on not increased (for us). If you start with her now, you pay about ~$6 (per 30-minutes) more than we do.
- Option 2 is all students pay the same fee. The instructors just tells everyone that he raised his fees.
As a parent, I like Option 1 better - I think it fosters loyality/longevity with the instructor. Some say it is unfair to the "new" students but my feeling is we were all the "new" customer at one point so we all paid the higher rate when we started.

NO ONE tips for each lesson. The "norm" around here is only to tip at the holidays. I also tend to give our long-time coach a birthday present in cash.

My rink in the Pacific NW charges $89 for a seies of 7 group lesssons. You get a $9 discount if you register a week before they start and also only pay $68 if you are taking a second class during the term. Adult levels 1-4 are offered, as well as Adult Advanced, which is basically working on jumps, as well as classes in moves, spins, power and patch, all of which as open to adults. As long as you are enrolled in group lessons, you can skate for free at ANY public session during the term - a great deal!

As for privates, I only know what my two coaches charge, which is $30 for a 30 min lesson.